Chapter 26
Returning to the training room, Xu Ziyan opened the game and found a new friend request. This person claimed to be the manager of WOF and wanted to chat with him about something.
He frowned, unable to figure out what business WOF’s manager would have with a TWG member like him.
Behind him, Bai Ke passed by, saw his screen, and smiled knowingly. “This person probably wants to poach you for WOF.”
Xu Ziyan said, “Poach me?”
Bai Ke said, “If you add him, the process will likely be: he promises you a starting position in the First String, plus an annual salary much higher than now, asking you to join their team.”
“WOF’s First String starter?” Xu Ziyan was somewhat incredulous. “Me?”
Although WOF’s strength in the Resist field wasn’t as good as the big threeāTWG, KW, and FTKāthey were regulars at the World Championship, with quite a few regular season and mid-season championships. They were a veteran team with real strength.
Seeing his face full of disbelief, Bai Ke was quite speechless. “Do you have some misunderstanding about your own strength? Newcomer Cup Champion? These managers have sharp eyes. How could they let go when encountering a promising newcomer like you? Plus, WOF is indeed lacking a healer, especially an offensive healer like you.”
“Well, but looking at it now, you can enter the First String staying in TWG too, so it doesn’t matter.”
This sentence again.
Xu Ziyan wasn’t so unaware of his weight to think his current strength could steadily squeeze Qu Qingyue out of the First String starting position. Yet Bai Ke was so certain, which made him feel a bit baffled.
However, Xu Ziyan didn’t ask, but said, “KK, you’re so experienced, were you poached too?”
Bai Ke said matter-of-factly, “Isn’t that for sure?”
Xu Ziyan said, “Then you…” Why didn’t you go?
He didn’t finish the sentence, but Bai Ke understood the unasked part, waving his hand with a smile. “Because back then I had a bump in my brain. If there’s another chance, watch how fast I slip away.”
Xu Ziyan knew the reason definitely wasn’t as simple as Bai Ke’s “bump in the brain,” but he didn’t probe further. Bai Ke definitely had his own reasons for not saying.
Bai Ke obviously appreciated his tactful behavior and chatted with him a bit more until Lu Donglou came in, then returned to his own seat.
From Bai Ke’s words and actions, Xu Ziyan sensed that he probably knew something ahead of himself to say those things.
But, what exactly was it?
A trace of uneasiness involuntarily surfaced in his heart. His phone vibrated; someone sent him a new message.
[Xie Wei: I watched today’s match. You played very well.]
Xu Ziyan’s eyes lit up. He hurriedly picked up his phone to reply, and those doubts were conveniently thrown to the back of his mind.
TWG First String’s loss in the first match seemed to truly be just due to poor condition. In the second match against UNC, they took two consecutive rounds in just forty minutes, seizing victory with an invincible momentum.
Naturally, the online reputation changed from a barrage of insults to endless praise. However, there was still a portion of accusatory voices pointed at Qu Qingyue, saying she dragged the whole team down, and if not for the excellent performance of other members, TWG would have lost because of her again.
There were even busybodies who specially opened a thread on an online forum titled: “Discussion: Has Clear’s condition this season reached the standard for retirement?”
For a time, Qu Qingyue became the target of public criticism.
Clearly having won the match, yet still suffering such maliceāit was truly too strange.
Xu Ziyan also went to watch the match replay. Although Qu Qingyue’s condition couldn’t be said to be the best, it was absolutely not useless as the online haters claimed.
Bai Ke said he would replace Qu Qingyue and become a First String starter.
Why?
Xu Ziyan was completely confused. Amidst his confusion, the Second String’s second match arrived.
This time, their opponent was also a strong team, KW Second String. This match was also won smoothly, and Xu Ziyan was selected as the MVP of the match due to his brilliant performance.
Suddenly, comments praising him while stepping on Qu Qingyue appeared even more.
Soon, Qu Qingyue’s fans began to view Xu Ziyan as an enemy. The two fan bases fought fiercely. The fire burned hotter and hotter until finally, the situation became “Xu Ziyan and Qu Qingyue are irreconcilable.”
In Xu Ziyan’s eyes, this development was baffling. He couldn’t make heads or tails of it, not knowing what was going on, so he simply stopped looking at Weiboāout of sight, out of mind.
Qu Qingyue even sent messages to comfort him, laughing and crying, saying online public opinion had always been like this and telling him not to take it to heart.
Days passed one by one. Seeing the end of the year approaching, the streets became livelier. TWG First and Second Strings’ subsequent two matches had no more twists and turns, smoothly achieving victory.
On New Year’s Day, although the base didn’t give a holiday because the season was still ongoing, the training load was reduced, invisibly giving them a chance to breathe.
Ending a ranked match, Xu Ziyan inadvertently looked out the window, only to see spots of snowflakes drifting down from the night sky like falling stars.
He let out an “Ah” and murmured, “It’s snowing.”
Hearing his words, Yuan Shaofeng also looked out the window, immediately shouting excitedly like a child, “It’s snowing! First snow! Hey, KK, Hide, come look quickly!”
Bai Ke was pulled up from his seat and dragged to the window by him. He glanced at the snow, then at the thoughtful-looking Xu Ziyan, and asked, “Ice, what are you thinking about?”
Xu Ziyan came back to his senses and smiled. “I was thinking, this is the first snow. It’s said that on the day of the first snow, if you can watch it with your beloved, the two can be together forever.”
Hearing this, Bai Ke’s expression twisted slightly, revealing an indescribable look. “…Didn’t expect you to be a romantic.”
Clearly, he didn’t get the tenderness and beauty in it at all.
However, Yuan Shaofeng behind him heard this, and his ears turned red.
Meng Cang looked at Xu Ziyan and said, “Ice, don’t you plan to spend today with your partner?”
These days were filled with training and matches, so fulfilling that Xu Ziyan hadn’t thought about this for a long time. Suddenly hearing the question, he paused before saying, “En, he’s in another city.”
“Long-distance,” Yuan Shaofeng sighed with emotion. “It’s really not easy.”
Bai Ke looked at Xu Ziyan with a smile that wasn’t quite a smile and didn’t speak.
Xu Ziyan almost suspected if Bai Ke knew something. Pretending not to notice, he picked up his phone, hesitated for a while, and opened the chat interface with Xie Wei.
[Xu Ziyan: Captain, are you free tonight?]
[Xu Ziyan: I want to treat you to dinner.]
His heart beat very fast. Almost immediately after sending it, he regretted it a bit and wanted to withdraw. But Xie Wei didn’t give him the chance, replying quickly.
[Xie Wei: If it’s a bit later, yes.]
Because it was New Year’s Day, the streets and alleys were almost crowded with people. Pure white snowflakes danced among the lively crowd. The decorative lights from Christmas a few days ago, which hadn’t been taken down yet, shone with colorful hues.
Afraid of being seen, Xu Ziyan specifically chose to meet outside the base. Not long after, Xie Wei’s silver-white sports car stopped in front of him as promised.
He opened the car door and sat in the passenger seat, inexplicably a bit nervous.
Today Xie Wei wore a beige sweater. His hair wasn’t styled, casually resting on his forehead, making him look much gentler. He lowered his head to adjust the temperature of the heater in the car and smiled at Xu Ziyan. “Sorry for the wait. It’s quite cold outside, right? What are you planning to take me to eat?”
The little person in Xu Ziyan’s heart was jumping around frantically, but on the surface, he forced himself to be calm, revealing a big smile. “I go to this shop often, just don’t know if it suits Captain’s taste.”
Xie Wei handed him his phone, signaling him to input the address into the navigation.
Xu Ziyan took it carefully. Just as he was typing, the phone suddenly vibrated. A new message on Line displayed in the navigation window at the top.
He swore that seeing this message was absolutely force majeure.
[Clear: Captain, what are you doing?]
It was Qu Qingyue.
An indescribable feeling surfaced in Xu Ziyan’s heart. Perhaps it was intuition as a fellow Omega, but he felt that Qu Qingyue sending Xie Wei a message at this time also meant she wanted to ask Xie Wei out.
He quickly entered the address and returned the phone to Xie Wei.
Xie Wei took it, glanced casually at the message, tapped a few times, and didn’t reply again, focusing on driving.
Seeing this, Xu Ziyan breathed an inexplicable sigh of relief.
Neither spoke much on the way, but the atmosphere didn’t seem awkward. The heater inside the car was ample, while outside, the lights were brilliant and bustling.
Arriving at the place, Xie Wei parked the car and got out with Xu Ziyan.
This shop mainly served dishes from Xu Ziyan’s hometown. The taste was lighter compared to the City A area. Xie Wei wasn’t picky, handing over the task of ordering entirely to Xu Ziyan. Picking up the teacup for a sip, he said, “Why did you suddenly think of treating me to dinner?”
Xu Ziyan was prepared for this question and smiled. “To thank you for the late-night snack last time.”
“Borrow and return?” Xie Wei laughed. “Why make it seem like a transaction? But coincidentally, I also have something to talk to you about.”
Xu Ziyan really couldn’t think of what business Xie Wei would have with him and hurriedly asked, “What is it?”
“You’ve been in the Second String for a while now. How does it feel?”
This topic leaned more toward small talk than “business.”
Xu Ziyan said truthfully, “Everyone in the Second String is quite nice.”
Xie Wei said, “The internet has been quite noisy these past few days. Originally I was a bit worried, but seeing you unaffected now, I’m relieved.”
Xu Ziyan knew he was talking about fans pitting him against Qu Qingyue in a virtual battle and felt somewhat helpless. “After all, the mouths are on other people; I can’t control them.”
Xie Wei said, “You don’t have any thoughts?”
Xu Ziyan said, “Think what…”
Halfway through, he suddenly felt a strong sense of dĆ©jĆ vu. This dialogue seemed to have happened somewhere.
Bai Ke seemed to have asked him a similar question before.
Only Bai Ke asking it and Xie Wei asking it meant two completely different things.
Xu Ziyan couldn’t gauge the current situation, so his speech became cautious. “I… indeed thought about entering the First String, but I think my current standard cannot compare with Clear, and I lack competition experience. I never took those words online seriously.”
Xie Wei was stunned, then laughed helplessly. “I was just asking casually. Don’t think too much. Let’s eat.”
But he didn’t clarify what exactly he wanted to talk to Xu Ziyan about.
After finishing the meal, the two returned to the car. Xie Wei didn’t rush to start the car. Instead, he reached into the storage box on the passenger side, took out a beautifully packaged small box, handed it to Xu Ziyan, and said, “Happy New Year.”
Seeing the youth’s surprised look, he curled his lips. “Actually, I wanted to give it to you the day you won your first match. I was too busy and missed it, so I’m using it as a New Year’s gift. En, also as thanks for bringing me food before.”
Xu Ziyan was full of joy, looking up at Xie Wei.
Outside the window, traffic flowed. The passing car lights and streetlights blurred the outline of the man in front of him. The tall and handsome Alpha’s eyes were gentle, looking at him intently, the light in his eyes seemingly possessing soul-stealing power.
The scent of lemon mint spread around, faintly mixed with a fruity sweetness.
A wave of courage from unknown origins surged in Xu Ziyan’s heart. He reached out to unbuckle the fastened seatbelt, leaned forward, and kissed Xie Wei’s lips.
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